Word Power

Five words that don’t mean what you think they do

Their earliest meanings reveal things that are quite different from the way we know them.

Simon Horobin, The Conversation
· Apr 05, 2021 · 08:30 am
Move over, ‘hygge’. The word the world really needs to combat stress is Danish, and it is ‘pyt’

There is no exact English translation, but there exists a rich strain of psychological research devoted to its benefits in everyday life.

Marie Helweg-Larsen, The Conversation
· Mar 14, 2019 · 08:30 am
Why a 66-year-old Maharashtrian villager has been sending congratulatory postcards to strangers

Annappa Chougule has taken it upon himself to praise local and national achievers, including Sonia Gandhi and Narendra Modi.

Sanket Jain
· May 23, 2018 · 11:30 am

‘Fake news’ makes news as Collins Dictionary’s Word of the Year 2017

The term trumped ‘unicorn’, ‘echo chamber’, ‘gig economy’ and ‘cuffing season’ for the lexicographer’s title.

Scroll Staff
· Nov 02, 2017 · 10:19 pm
Watch: This is how to use the word Kafkaesque (and how not to)

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· Jun 26, 2016 · 08:00 pm
The legend of EPW: How a weekly magazine became an institution

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· Jan 24, 2016 · 08:45 am

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Word Power

Five words that don’t mean what you think they do

Their earliest meanings reveal things that are quite different from the way we know them.

Simon Horobin, The Conversation · Apr 05, 2021 · 08:30 am

Move over, ‘hygge’. The word the world really needs to combat stress is Danish, and it is ‘pyt’

There is no exact English translation, but there exists a rich strain of psychological research devoted to its benefits in everyday life.

Marie Helweg-Larsen, The Conversation · Mar 14, 2019 · 08:30 am

Why a 66-year-old Maharashtrian villager has been sending congratulatory postcards to strangers

Annappa Chougule has taken it upon himself to praise local and national achievers, including Sonia Gandhi and Narendra Modi.

Sanket Jain · May 23, 2018 · 11:30 am

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‘Fake news’ makes news as Collins Dictionary’s Word of the Year 2017

The term trumped ‘unicorn’, ‘echo chamber’, ‘gig economy’ and ‘cuffing season’ for the lexicographer’s title.

Scroll Staff · Nov 02, 2017 · 10:19 pm

Watch: This is how to use the word Kafkaesque (and how not to)

Everyone uses it, but do we know what it means?

Scroll Staff · Jun 26, 2016 · 08:00 pm

The legend of EPW: How a weekly magazine became an institution

As Paranjoy Guha Thakurta is appointed its new editor, a look back at the three remarkable men who headed the iconic publication before he did.

Anu Kumar · Jan 24, 2016 · 08:45 am

Video

Eco India: How climate resilient fox nuts are helping Bihar's farmers tackle crop losses

Yesterday · 08:55 am

Eco India, Episode 274: How worsening environmental conditions call for action and innovation

Nov 16, 2024 · 03:25 pm

Eco India: Kanpur's tanneries adopt sustainable practices to cut environmental impact

Nov 10, 2024 · 08:55 am

Eco India, Episode 273: How cleaner alternatives pave way for a sustainable future

Nov 09, 2024 · 03:25 pm

Watch: Crises of belonging and citizenship in Assam

Nov 07, 2024 · 03:30 pm

A call to arms: let's get rid of all the jargon!

Frequent users of jargon think they’re being impressive when they’re really just baffling their listeners.

Baden Eunson, The Conversation · Mar 02, 2015 · 04:30 pm

Two decades after his death, Gerald Durrell is still making the world a better place

The academy set up by the beloved author has now trained 3,350 conservationists from 135 countries.

Julia P G Jones, The Conversation · Mar 01, 2015 · 09:25 am

Take Scroll With You

Simon Horobin, The Conversation
· Apr 05, 2021 · 08:30 am

Marie Helweg-Larsen, The Conversation
· Mar 14, 2019 · 08:30 am

Sanket Jain
· May 23, 2018 · 11:30 am

Scroll Staff
· Nov 02, 2017 · 10:19 pm

Scroll Staff
· Jun 26, 2016 · 08:00 pm

Anu Kumar
· Jan 24, 2016 · 08:45 am

Baden Eunson, The Conversation
· Mar 02, 2015 · 04:30 pm

Julia P G Jones, The Conversation
· Mar 01, 2015 · 09:25 am